From the synopsis, I felt that it was going to be a strong read for me thematically however what a surprise that this may end up being my favorite horror release of the year. There were so many different genres of horror intertwined with gory, tactile serial killers and physical violence, the omnipresent but invisible germs and disease, and hauntings of ghosts and grief. Despite having so much going on, the novel never becomes overloaded or too chaotic. There is a beautiful clarity in the prose that the fact that this seems to be her horror debut is thrilling, cannot wait to read more in the future.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC for review.

Tense. Gory. Impactful and thought provoking.

“Wuhang was the epicenter of body bags and NYC was the epicenter of anti-Asian hate crimes.”

Part ghost story, part serial killer mystery, part unflinching commentary on how our worst fears can lead to illogical fear and blame. Bat Eater is a deftly layered story that’s as gruesome and intense as it is original and affecting.

This is the kind of story meant to be told through horror elements!

Haunted by her sister’s murder...and maybe even her sister’s ghost...Cora grapples with fear. Fear of the germs killing people. Fear of the hungry ghosts wanting fed. And fear of a serial killer targeting Asian women.

Baker has delivered a suffocatingly intense narrative that is rife with uncomfortable truths. The complex storyline skillfully explores the inner turmoil of grief and trauma Cora faces while also expounding upon the external turmoil of seeing Asian women hunted and brutalized. It’s no surprise that the writing is raw and provocative to match the tone of the read. And while the richly crafted characters and the dark humor sometimes offset the sense of foreboding, the narrative never quite let’s go of its sinister nature.

This is a rage filled horror novel that is meant to evoke deep feelings. And for me, Baker well delivered through this perfect blend of Chinese lore and incisive commentary.

🎧Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is an Earphones Award winner, and with GOOD reason. It’s narrated by the incomparable @natalienaudus who delivered an engrossing performance that captured the fullness of the emotion and breathed life into Cora Zeng.

Many thanks to my friends at @_mira_books_ @htp_hive @htpbooks and @htpbooks_audio for the free #gifted copies of this book. #partner

It is clearly true that CoVid change everyone in different ways. It still takes me by surprise reading about Covid in books to this day. Wether it was eating a bag or a leak in a Lab… it is now written in history. This book checked all the marks on what a horror story is. The audio was also excellent and I enjoyed it!

If you're looking for a dark and gory peek behind the curtains of being a biracial woman in America during the height of the global pandemic.

It's hard to say what was more frightening, the casual and prevalent racism that dogs Cora's heels, or the ghosts that follow in their wake.

Being able to see Cora's identity pushed and pulled between her white and Asian aunties was an excellent utilization of bringing characters to life and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I tried many different times to finish this book, thinking maybe I would be in a better mood to try it out. I even waited until after pub date to see if maybe the audiobook would intrigue me a little more, but I think this book just wasn't for me. DNF @ 55%

BOOK REVIEW ✨

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zheng by Kylie Lee Baker

“In this explosive horror novel, a woman is haunted by inner trauma, hungry ghost, and a serial killer as she confronts the brutal violence experienced by East Asians during the pandemic.”

Rating: 4.5⭐️
Genre: Horror, thriller
Yes, no, or maybe: yes(x100)

Read if you like:
-getting the heebie jeebies
-ghosts
-serial killers
-books with deeper meaning
-plot twists
-unreliable narrators

This book was so much more than I expected! I went into this thinking it was a thriller with a little paranormal thrown into it, but it was more than that. Readers will get a glimpse into the experience of so many of our Asian population was subjected to during the pandemic; fear, hatred, revulsion, and cruelty. Make no mistake, this book makes a statement and we should all listen.

We follow Cora in the wake of the pandemic and her witnessing a white male shoving her sister in front of a moving train while shouting “Bat eater!”. She is a crime scene cleaner and lately all her clean ups have had some things in common; Asian women, brutally murdered, and a bat left at every scene. I absolutely loved Cora and her rag tag team. The whole time I was asking “who is Cora?? Can we trust her??”. Her character arch was perfection. 👩‍🍳💋

On the paranormal side, the ghosts were so spooky. I had goose bumps throughout this entire book. My heart was both broken for and feared these ghosts. I enjoyed learning about hungry ghosts in Chinese culture.

The writing was fantastic. It was descriptive and flowed beautifully. Don’t get me wrong, there was some nasty, gory scenes!! But in the best of ways! (Horror fans will understand)

Overall,I highly recommend Bat Eater. It was a gripping paranormal thriller with a moving political statement.

And now for something completely different... BAT EATER, AND OTHER NAMES FOR CORA ZENG by Kylie Lee Baker is a gruesome horror story set in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, about a young woman who feels adrift in life, recently graduated with a degree that has no real job prospects, especially as the world shuts down all "non-essentials" like museums. She's also biracial and feeling both like she's part of two worlds and yet belonging in neither. Unfortunate life events set her on a path intersecting with a serial killer going after Asian women. It's truly scary and graphic, and not for the squeamish. But it's so gripping, I could hardly put it down. Sometimes I had to do that thing where I cover the next line or paragraph with my hand so my eyes don't jump ahead to see what happens. Very well-written, terrifying, and heart-wrenching. I wouldn't be surprised to see this snapped up and turned into a film sooner than later.

#BookRecommendations #BookReviews #Horror #HorrorStories #CovidStories #covidstoriesnyc

As one of the people unfortunate enough to experience COVID, this book hit me in a different way. Let me start off by saying I am obsessed with Kylie Lee Baker's writing style and the way that she brings a world to life. The imagery is insane and gory in a way that I could picture the events happening in front of me. This was book was different in many ways from the author's Scarlet Alchemist duology but had some similar elements. I was captivated by the mystery and uncovering who/what was killing these people. The way this story shed light for me on the way the asian population specifically chinese people were treated due to COVID and the racism that was experienced. I love that the author uses this story to tackle the very real conversation that people were living in their daily lives. I devoured this story in 24 hours and could not put it down. It is the type of story that you catch yourself thinking about and stays with you. If the duology did not do it for me this 100% cemented Kylie Lee Baker as an auto by author for me.

Bat Eater is visceral, infuriating, and heartbreaking. It’s one of the best books I’ve read in a long time, and I’m going to think about it for a while. It’s a tough read but an important one. I was a little worried about reading a book set during the pandemic, but picked it up at the right time. Thank you NetGalley and MIRA for the eARC.

I love a horror story that uses ghosts and hauntings as a metaphor for the long, sticky afterlives of grief and trauma. It's been just long enough that it's the right time for a ghost story that reflects on the months of lockdown and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng opens with a deeply chilling scene in which Cora witnesses her sister's murder, being pushed in front of an oncoming train as an apparent hate crime. A few months later, during the Hungry Ghost Festival, Cora works as a crime scene cleaner, deeply haunted by her sister's unsolved murder and struggling deeply to keep living in the midst of a deadly pandemic. At work, she notices a distinct increase in murdered Chinese women, often finding bats while she cleans the crime scenes. At home, she finds evidence of hungry ghosts' sharp teeth scratches and bites in her living room furniture. The ensuing story follows Cora's chilling discovery of a series of dead Asian girls and young women, a coverup, and hungry ghosts who cannot be denied.

This book is tonally perfect. I ached reading Cora's haunting narration, which so perfectly captures and recalls the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic: the anguish of isolation, the unreality of lockdown, the mistrust of crowds that verges on agoraphobia, the deep-seated contamination panic, and the general sense of staggering loss. The grief of 2020 is distilled to a sharp focus on the murder of Cora's sister, dealing with the messiness of grief and highlighting anti-Asian hate that spawned during the first year of lockdown. The gore in this book is grisly, but the fact that it sticks with you feels right, the way that our unaddressed and suppressed trauma and grief from the pandemic lingers. It is a fantastic story of haunting and grief and wrath.

I had requested this book from NetGalley already when I heard a rave about it on BookTalk, one of my favorite bookish podcasts. I had to start the book immediately after and I am so thrilled I had a chance to read it. This novel is legit horror- it is creepy, there is guts galore, and I didn't love reading it at night. But it was worth the thrills and misery for the social commentary, the wickedly smart writing, and the very real trauma depicted. One of my favorite genres is really affecting horror about marginalized groups that uses a blend of horror, ghosts or magical realism, and smart writing to gently (or even heavy-handedly) tell the reader about the ills of our world. Chuck Tingle has done it amazingly with his recent books, and now I need to add Kylie Lee Baker to the list. I found this book unputdownable, and I would hand it to anyone who can handle some gore and the pandemic setting. It is so interesting, the characters so flawed and traumatized and human. I would hand this to anyone who can handle gore and hungry ghosts. Five stars, no notes.

This book was weird in the best way—dark, surreal, and completely immersive. It follows Cora Zeng, a crime scene cleaner in Chinatown, who’s dealing with overwhelming grief after witnessing her sister’s murder. As she tries to cope, the world around her starts to unravel: ghostly visions, serial killers, and disturbing signs tied to the Hungry Ghost Festival all collide in a story that’s as much about trauma and identity as it is about horror.
The writing is visceral and atmospheric, blending gore and ghost stories with sharp social commentary on anti-Asian violence during the pandemic. At times it was hard to tell what was real and what was in Cora’s head—but that disorientation felt intentional and powerful.
It’s not a straightforward read, and some parts felt a bit abstract, but the originality and emotional weight really stuck with me. If you’re into horror that’s messy, meaningful, and deeply weird (in a good way), definitely give this one a try.
Thank you MIRA for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I was weary about a pandemic horror novel, after finishing it, I feel dumb for having any doubt. This is truly incredible, it gave me a fright that I haven't felt since Mike Flanagan's Hill House.

I enjoyed reading this book so much. It’s a solid five star read. An homage to the period of covid with an incredibly timed pace. Would definitely read more of Kylie Lee Baker’s books?!

so so horrifying and gory but wow is this an incredible story stemming from real issues. speechless. even in times, especially during the beginning when it seems slow, it's for reasons you find out later. i can't talk about this book enough. a must read

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing / MIRA for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book is not for the faint of hearts. This is horrifying, gut wrenching, gory, and at many times depressing. This book's time setting is during the COVID pandemic and when so many social injustices and hate crimes occurred (and still is). This book has a combination of horror (psychological, ghosts, and the gore) and murder mystery because there's a serial killer targeting Asians. You're in for a wild ride and sensory overload reading this!

I loved this story. It was such a unique take on a "ghost story." It was such a twisting ride that was hard to put down. I really wish there had been more.

Bottom line: this is excellent!

This book follows Cora, who is asian and trying to survive in NYC during COVID. She is reeling from the death of her sister, who was pushed in front of a train while someone yelled "bat eater," and working as a crime scene cleaner, while noticing a pattern of gruesome deaths of asian women. Cora is such a great main character because I feel everyone can find some way to relate to her. Cora struggles with anxiety and OCD symptoms. She struggles with her own identity (half Chinese, half white, not her sister). She struggles with connecting with friends and family, especially during a time as isolated as COVID-19 lockdown. Nothing feels forced about her. Everything seems realistic and possible, yet her world begins to blur and she struggles to figure out what is reality. Is the ghost of her sister one of the hungry ghosts her aunt warned about? The plotting of this book was excellent as it gradually built up to be more and more horrific. There are ghosts. There is racism and bigotry. There are brutal crime scenes and serial killers. There are also wholesome, funny moments of friendship. This book is just balanced so well. I love it and recommend if any of it sounds interesting.

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker is one of my favorite books of the year. Absolutely heartbreaking and scary. A true fear that a lot of Asian women faced. A MUST READ!

I feel like sharing this book with as many people as possible is my new mission!!

"Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng" is a story full of surprises and harsh realities from the very first chapter. When I started reading, I didn't know what to expect, but if I had to guess, it would have said something about self-knowledge and personal growth amidst the adversities brought about by derogatory prejudice against human beings. In the first chapter, I saw that I was completely wrong!!

With an engaging writing style, Kylie Lee Baker narrates in a scenario of pandemic and chaos that is very familiar, adding elements of horror, shock, and humanity. Coraline Zeng is a peculiar character and different from what one might expect in a protagonist. With her traumas, doubts, and fears well explained, she brings them to the surface, making it clear that she does not see herself as a heroine under any circumstances. Quite the contrary, she is a recluse and avoids the stress of making choices, but she is still a person who is in control of herself and, precisely because she knows herself so well, knows that she does not have big dreams or aspire to great things.

During this reading I found myself becoming attached to the characters and what motivated them, increasingly curious to know where everything would end. From the doubt as to whether what Cora was going through was real, to the various attempts to know how to appease the ghosts.

One of my new favorites that I will recommend to the four winds, hoping that it will have a greater reach and recognition.